8/1/2011 4:10 PM PDT BY TMZ STAFF

An MTV reality star is threatening to sue the people behind "Entourage" -- claiming the show stole his nickname, "Johnny Bananas" ... and used it to fuel a storyline without his permission.

In case you gave up on "Entourage" ... Johnny Drama recently agreed to be the voice of an animated TV show called "Johnny's Bananas" ... in which the characters are all apes, gorillas, and other primates (above right, below right).

Problem is, former "Real World" star Johnny Devenanzio (pictured above left) says he's been going by the name "Johnny Bananas" on various MTV shows since 2006 ... and claims he owns the rights to the name.

Now, Johnny Bananas -- the human -- got himself a lawyer ... who fired off a cease and desist letter to HBO, the network behind "Entourage."

In the letter, Johnny's attorney Stephanie Ovadia writes, "If you do not cease and desist ... you leave us little option but to seek judicial intervention."

Johnny tells TMZ he believes the name controversy is "in no way coincidental and is instead an attempt to capitalize on the name recognition which I'm solely responsible for creating."

He adds, "I intend to fight vigorously in defense of the years of hard work and dedication I've spent making Johnny Bananas a household name, and the purpose of this lawsuit is aimed at protecting the integrity of my brand."

UPDATE: A spokesperson for HBO tells TMZ the folks at "Entourage" have not received "any correspondence regarding this matter."

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4/8/2011 2:24 PM PDT BY TMZ STAFF

"Entourage" star Kevin Connolly is in the midst of a major league business deal -- because dude says he's interested in buying stake in a professional sports team ... the New York Mets.

Connolly was out yesterday in L.A., where he admitted he's "involved with a group of guys" who are trying to buy a piece of the MLB franchise.

Connolly's investment team reportedly includes two heavy hitters from "Entourage" -- the show's executive producer Doug Ellin and his co-star Kevin Dillon -- along with a few other deep-pocketed baseball fans.

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11/24/2010 7:00 AM PST BY TMZ STAFF

He doesn't look anything like E from the show ... whatsoever -- but according to the strange man riding shotgun with Mark Wahlberg, he's the guy who inspired the famous character from "Entourage."

Wahlberg and Eric "The Real E" Weinstein hit the streets in L.A. on Monday -- and Weinstein tells TMZ, it's really true ... he's been working with Mark for nearly 18 years ... and they do everything together.

More Jeremy Piven

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1/5/2010 9:45 AM PST BY TMZ STAFF

TMZ has gotten to the bottom of Jeremy Piven's top -- that mysterious scar on the back of J.P.'s melon.

The "Entourage" star tells us he got banged up bad doing theater work back in the day -- so bad it left big scars on the back of his head.

Piven -- who was photographed in Hawaii -- tells us on December 17, he went under the knife for a "scar minimizing procedure." We never heard of it either, but supposedly it reduces the scarring. But Piven says he had no idea post-op scarring would be so prominent.

So what's Jeremy gonna do? He says he was thinking of shaving his head but can't because of continuity problems with "Entourage."

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12/13/2009 9:00 AM PST BY TMZ STAFF

"Entourage" star Kevin Connolly isn't quite buying Rex Lee's story that he occasionally gets made fun of on the set because of his ethnicity and sexuality.

Rex told a photoglast month he's sometimes the butt of a joke among the crew and that he tries not to let it bother him. We caught up with Kevin last night and while he said he doesn't think Rex is lying, he thought Rex "didn't mean that" and he had a "hard time believing it."

For his part, "Entourage" creator Doug Ellin said at the time he would talk to Rex and fire anyone who did it again.

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12/6/2009 2:30 AM PST BY TMZ STAFF

James Woods' ex-girlfriend claims she's being "humiliated" by a website built for adulterers -- and it's all because they share the same name.

Ashley Madison (the actress) is suing Ashley Madison (a website for people who want to have affairs) claiming the site is using her name and likeness without her permission -- and destroying her reputation in the process.

There isn't a single picture of Ashley Madison on AshleyMadison.com, but there are a few on AshleyMadisonBio.com -- a site the actress claims is connected to the infidelity encouragers.

In the suit, the actress claims she wants the site to stop using her name ASAP ... because frankly, she feels cheated.

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11/20/2009 6:18 PM PST BY TMZ STAFF

The creator of "Entourage"is vowing to put a stop to the gay and racial "jokes" being thrown around on the set of his show, after one of the stars revealed he's "occasionally" targeted ... and unhappy about it. Rex Lee -- who plays Lloyd on the show -- was out in L.A. yesterday, where he claimed certain members of the crew "occasionally" make fun of his ethnicity and sexuality on set. Rex added, "I try not to let it bother me."

After Lee's admission, the show's creator Doug Ellin told TMZ he's "shocked and horrified" to hear about the situation and "will be speaking to everybody before we start filming again in March. It's not something condoned or acceptable."

Ellin also told us he already spoke to Lee -- and during the convo, Rex re-confirmed that crew members had made "insensitive gay jokes."

Ellin claims he's now going to lay down the gauntlet, telling Rex if it happens again, the culprit will be fired.